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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-08-21-BOH-min LEXINGTON BOARD OF HEALTH MEETING MINUTES Wednesday, August 21, 2019 7:00 P.M. Cary Hall Memorial Building Estabrook Hall, (Lower level) 1605 Massachusetts Avenue Lexington, MA 02420 Board of Health Members in Attendance: Wendy Heiger-Bernays, PhD, Sharon MacKenzie R.N., CCM, John J. Flynn Office of Public Health Attendees: Kari Sasportas, Public Health Director Francis Dagle, Public Health Assistant Speakers: Natalie Cohen, LPS Green Team Tina McBride, LPS Green Team Apichat Chuenprapa, Love at First Bite Pisutkan Samemuang, Love at First Bite Jae Park, Bulpan Restaurant Frances Cherf, Beijing Restaurant Kay Chai, Dabin Restaurant Documents: Community Health Report Environmental Health Report Order Letter, Love at First Bite Inspection Report dated 6/27/19 - Love at First Bite Inspection Report dated 7/11/19 - Love at First Bite Inspection Report dated 7/25/19 - Love at First Bite Inspection Report dated 8/14/19 - Love at First Bite Order Letter, Dabin Restaurant Timeline of Violations —Dabin Restaurant Mojin Solutions Contract—Dabin Restaurant Inspection Report dated 7/17/19 - Dabin Inspection Report dated 8/14/19 - Dabin Order Letter, Bulpan Grill & Lounge Inspection Report dated 8/15/19—Bulpan Order Letter—Beijing Chinese Dining MDPH Biobot Analytics Emergency Preparedness Report Wendy Heiger-Bernays, PhD, Chairperson, called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM. Minutes of June 12, 2019 were reviewed. In a motion duly made and seconded, the minutes were approved with revisions. The board reviewed the Community Health Report; Pilot Summer Immunization Clinic- Lexington Office of Public Health(LOPH) hosted a summer catch-up immunization clinic for prospective Lexington Public Schools (LPS) students needing immunizations required for school entry on Tuesday, August 20d'from 10:00am to 12:00pm at the LPS Administrative Offices at 146 Maple St. The Public Health Nurse and previous School Nurse Leader staffed this clinic. A total of 7 children were vaccinated with 10 vaccines, including 3 MMR, 3 Polio and 4 Tdap. One limitation of the clinic was the inability to offer the Varicella vaccine, which LOPH does not have the resources to keep frozen. This collaboration between LOPH and LPS enabled these students to start the school year on time, and not potentially remain out of school until they are able to meet immunization requirements for school entry. Fall Flu clinic Planning- This first two flu clinics of the season, which will be open to those residents 60 years of age and older have been scheduled. Trivalent Fluad vaccine (licensed for use in 65 years and older) and quadrivalent Flucelvax vaccine will be available at these clinics. The first will be held, Wednesday, October 2nd: 10:00am-1:00pm at St Brigid's Keilty Hall. The second will be held, Tuesday, October 15d' : 10:00am— 11:30am at the Museum of Scottish Rite (part of Brookhaven Health Faire).Future family-style flu clinics are being planned, including a Saturday, October 26h EDS-style clinic at LPS Central Offices gym and school-based clinic at Lexington High School Media Room on Wednesday, December 4h, 2019. MRC Stop the Bleed Training- On Wednesday, September 25 from 6pm to Bpm in the Parker Room in Town Hall, LOPH will host a Stop the Bleed training for local MRC volunteers. LOPH also hopes that this will serve as an opportunity to recruit more active MRC volunteers, and will work with the town Public Information Officer to promote this event. The Stop the Bleed training aims to educate lay individuals in how to respond to traumatic injuries (such as those seen in the Boston Marathon bombing) using tourniquets and wound packing until professional EMS help can arrive. Environmental Health report was reviewed and the following cases were discussed; Cyclospora Outbreak Update; The Massachusetts Department of Public Health(MDPH) Food Protection Program (FPP) contacted the Lexington Office of Public Health on 7/26 to request an environmental investigation per CDC protocol at a Lexington establishment associated with the outbreak. Lexington Public Health staff conducted the investigation on 7/26 and submitted the following items to the state: 1) last routine food inspection report dated 7/18, 2) CDC National Environmental Assessment Reporting System (NEARS) investigation report, 3) inspection report for investigation of risk factors associated with foodborne illness, 4) copies of invoices for produce from the distributor for the time period under investigation (late June), 5) assessment of procedures for washing produce, and 6) copy of the menu. Lexington Public Health staff conducted a re-inspection of the Lexington establishment on 7/31 and submitted the re- inspection report to the state. On 8/6/19 Lexington Public Health staff participated in a conference call with the MDPH Working Group for Foodborne Illness Control (WGFIC) to report on our investigation and hear updates from other affected jurisdictions. To date there are over 100 cases of cyclospora in Massachusetts associated with this outbreak. The state has not yet officially confirmed a source of the outbreak, or released the names of the establishments, distributors, or specific food source(s)they are investigating. Little India Update; The establishment remains closed at this time, however, the new owner has submitted a food plan review application and new permit application. The new food plan review is in progress at this time (See June 12, 2019 meeting minutes for more detail). Dabin Restaurant; Ms. Kyung Chai, owner, contracted food consultant, Mojin Solutions, to conduct training and inspections. The BOH will receive an update on their progress at the next regularly scheduled meeting date (See June 12, 2019 meeting minutes for more detail). Love at First Bite; On June 20, 2019, an Order to Cease Operation was issued to the owner of the establishment. Kammy Demello, Health Agent, conducted a re-inspection on June 26, 2019 and the establishment was allowed to conditionally re-open. The establishment is working with food safety consultant, Mojin Solutions. The Health Director noted critical violations that were observed in an inspection by the food safety consultant. Bulpan Grill and Lounge; On August 16, 2019, an Order to Cease Operation was issued to the owner of the establishment after a routine inspection displayed multiple violations of the State Sanitary Code. The establishment remains closed at this time. Jae Park, owner, came before the BOH to review the violations present in the establishment. Mr. Park stated that many of the violations had been corrected and the establishment would be ready for re-inspection in the near future. Beijing Chinese Restaurant; The Office of Public Health received an inspection report from the establishment food safety consultant that noted unsanitary conditions in the lobster tank used for food service. On August 7, 2019, an Order to Cease and Desist lobster tank use for human consumption was issued to the owner of the establishment. Frances Cheng, owner, met with the BOH to review the Order Letter. Since the Order Letter, Ms. Cheng has contracted a professional company to regularly clean and maintain the cleanliness of the lobster tank. The BOH ordered Ms. Cheng to have all receipts from an approved lobster wholesale company available for review. Food Rescue Program; Natalie Cohen and Tina McBride of LPS Green Team met with the board to review a food rescue program that they would like to propose to the schools. After some discussion, Wendy Heiger-Bernays, PhD, proposed a motion that stated, "The Lexington Board ofHealth will allow the food rescue program to proceed in the school, contingent on final review by the Health Director. " Sharon MacKenzie R.N., CCM, seconded the motion. All were in favor. The Board reviewed the current staffing for the Office of Public Health Biobot Analytics Proposal; Biobot Analytics, a start-up which measures the concentration of opioids and other drugs in sewage to estimate consumption, contacted the Health Director to see if Lexington would be interested in participating in a pilot study. They are launching a state-funded project with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to pilot technology across several municipalities in the Commonwealth, and Lexington has been identified as a city to be potentially included. The aim of the pilot is to generate data that stakeholders involved in opioid response can to understand what types of drugs are being consumed in near real-time and distribute resources accordingly. In this first phase of the pilot study, Biobot will be validating their technology against existing opioid data across six Massachusetts municipalities. Lexington has been approached to serve as a control population as opioid overdose rates are among the lowest in the state. After discussion, the Board decided to participate in the study. The proposal was also shared with the Town Manager and Board of Selectmen who are supportive of the Town's participation. The Emergency Preparedness report was reviewed and the following topics were discussed; Lexington Office of Public health is hosting a Stop the Bleed training to recruit MRC volunteers for Lexington on 9/25 from 6-8 PM in the Parker Room. Please see Community Health Report for more information. An update of the Emergency Dispensing Site plan for critical staff dispensing and at-risk and people with access or functional needs is due by 9/30/19. A template has been provided by the region. September is national public health preparedness month. The Lexington Office of Public Health will work with the Lexington Public Information Officer to craft messages for the Town's social media channels during this national campaign. Wendy Heiger-Bernays, PhD, motioned that the meeting be adjourned and John J. Flynn seconded. All were in favor. The meeting adjourned at 9:22 PM. It was noted that the next meeting will take place on Wednesday, September 18, 2019.